How Can I Get My Business to Show Up in Google Local?

A few weeks ago, we were talking to a potential client about the number of disparaging comments one of their competitors had on such sites like Google Places, Insider Pages, Yelp, etc… They asked how to get a business to show up in the Pittsburgh google places section for their industry and asked us about affordable Pittsburgh SEO. We showed this soon to be client how well their competitor showed up because that business had 100’s of comments on review sites everywhere across the internet. Then we saw a post on Google’s Webmaster blog that talked about changing their algorithm so that someone couldn’t manipulate the search results and perform self-adjusted SEO based on terrible customer service. People talk often about negative sentiment through social media, but everyone fails to mention negative and positive sentiment through SEO. Needless to say, our clients have been enjoying great rankings because we have been ahead of the curve on this one. Read the story in it’s entirety below. I pulled this directly from CNET this afternoon and it’s a great read.

After a New York Times magazine article exposed his bizarre business tactic of courting the worst customer feedback possible so that infuriated buyers would leave negative commentary online, boosting his Google search results, DecorMyEyes.com eyeglass proprietor Vitaly Borker has been arrested on charges of cyberstalking, making interstate threats, mail fraud, and wire fraud.

The original story about DecorMyEyes, published on November 26, detailed the Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Borker’s tactics of harassing, cheating, and bullying customers, sometimes under pseudonyms and often with threats of obscenity and violence, to the point that several of them contacted the police. He engaged in these tactics, as well as selling counterfeit and defective eyeglasses, specifically to take advantage of a loophole in Google’s search algorithm that didn’t differentiate between positive and negative mentions of a company in ranking sites in search results. As a results, DecorMyEyes’ Google rankings were stellar. A Twitter account claiming to belong to DecorMyEyes tweeted a link to the Times story the day after it was published and added “Have a look at this publicity stunt! WOW we are famous.”

Google responded several days later on its official blog to say that it’s made modifications. “In the last few days we developed an algorithmic solution which detects the merchant from the Times article along with hundreds of other merchants that, in our opinion, provide an extremely poor user experience,” the blog post explained. “The algorithm we incorporated into our search rankings represents an initial solution to this issue, and Google users are now getting a better experience as a result.” Borker was arrested and due in federal court in New York on Monday, and according to CNBC agents found weapons and ammunition in his home at the time of arrest. The charges of making interstate threats and cyberstalking each have a maximum penalty of five years jail time, whereas if Borker is convicted of either mail fraud or wire fraud he could face 20 years in prison for each.

Morgan Cushey writes SEO articles for clients who want to enhance their online authority and see their Google Rankings rise. She has written entertaining and informative SEO-focused articles across a wide range of industries, from dentistry and landscaping to tourism and pest control, giving her a comprehensive knowledge on a variety of subjects. Morgan has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Journalism with a minor in political science from California University of Pennsylvania. She has been a lifelong writer and has extensive experience in many styles of writing, from SEO-focused articles and PR to non-fiction and feature news articles written for local newspapers. Morgan lives in Monongahela, PA, with her fiancé Aaron, where she spends her free time reading or snuggling with her two dogs, Biscuit and Ellie.